Unfortunately, free agents over the age of 30 have struggled to get contracts for more than one year in this and the previous off-season in MLB free agency.
One of those free agents who has not had much luck finding a team thus far in MLB free agency is Carlos Gonzalez. The left-handed outfielder turned 33 years old in October, so if the trend sticks, he’ll most likely sign a one-year contract probably after pitchers and catchers report.
In 2018, he did just that as the Colorado Rockies re-signed him in mid-March to a $5 million one-year contract.
After a solid 2018, CarGo is back on the free agent market and not much has been said about where he could land. In 132 games in 2018, he hit a slash of .276/.329/.467 with 16 home runs and 64 RBI. Those stats put him in respectable positions on every leader board when comparing him to other right fielders in 2018.
Keeping in mind that he is being ranked against players like Mookie Betts and Bryce Harper, that’s saying something about a guy who was 32 years old. He had the 5th highest batting average, 12th highest on-base percentage, and 7th highest slugging percentage.
Regarding his fielding percentage and range factor, he ranks in the top 10 with players who are younger than he is. In fact, his range was higher than Harper’s. His fielding percentage of .991 was tied with Nomar Mazara and Jason Heyward. Gonzalez still has something to offer to teams and playing in the outfield in Colorado has to mean something – especially considering how hitter-friendly that park is.
Gonzalez has one of the prettiest swings in baseball. His balanced, powerful, and complicated swing was broken down by The Denver Post in 2016. That swing still exists today and any team that needs a right fielder will certainly benefit from it as his career slash of .287/.345/.506 shows.